Too Lean Older Adult?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Such a brag post my god.

I don’t think so at all. OP, share what you’ve learned and what changes you’ve made. I am also mid 50s with mild osteopenia, rising cholesterol and shifting body composition. I have always been skinny and the weight is now coming on quickly and hard to take off. I am trying to eat better and adding a lot more strength training, trying to improve both bone density and blood numbers.

I was slim until menopause and then I gained fat and lost muscle. My weight stayed much the same with slight fluctuations and I wear stretchy clothes so I didn’t really notice. But my bloodwork and bone scans told a different story. I can’t blame the shift on my hormones though - it was my sedentary lifestyle and a lifetime of gaining and losing the same five pounds. Because I didn’t eat enough protein or lift weights, I lost muscle with the fat, little by little. When I gained the next five pounds, it was fat and so on and so on. I think I’ve finally cracked the code and it feels great. I do worry that I’ve gone too far and traded one problem for another, but I’ll let my doctor advise me on that.

[Anonymous]

So the differentiator is lift x 3. How do you recover? I am a bit younger and have a hard time from recovering from lift x 2. Right now only doing once a week to conserve energy for other stuff in life.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So the differentiator is lift x 3. How do you recover? I am a bit younger and have a hard time from recovering from lift x 2. Right now only doing once a week to conserve energy for other stuff in life.

I walk or do yoga in between. I had to increase my calories to have enough energy to lift and recover. My sleep is better since I started lifting and that helps with recovery. I also use recovery boots at home (compression therapy) on days I lift.

[Anonymous]

Your doctor is not going to care what you think your body fat percentage is. For 1) it’s probably wrong. Your doctor is going to look at your labs and bone scans and make their recommendations based on that.

As long as you aren’t losing weight, are eating enough calories and protein, are lifting weights, and not trying to eat very low carb in efforts to “cut” I think you are doing great.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Such a brag post my god.

I don’t think so at all. OP, share what you’ve learned and what changes you’ve made. I am also mid 50s with mild osteopenia, rising cholesterol and shifting body composition. I have always been skinny and the weight is now coming on quickly and hard to take off. I am trying to eat better and adding a lot more strength training, trying to improve both bone density and blood numbers.

I was slim until menopause and then I gained fat and lost muscle. My weight stayed much the same with slight fluctuations and I wear stretchy clothes so I didn’t really notice. But my bloodwork and bone scans told a different story. I can’t blame the shift on my hormones though - it was my sedentary lifestyle and a lifetime of gaining and losing the same five pounds. Because I didn’t eat enough protein or lift weights, I lost muscle with the fat, little by little. When I gained the next five pounds, it was fat and so on and so on. I think I’ve finally cracked the code and it feels great. I do worry that I’ve gone too far and traded one problem for another, but I’ll let my doctor advise me on that.

Whenever I read these obsessive posts they just sound disordered to me. I am 56, a few pounds overweight but very fit. I eat healthy foods along with a nice dose of ones I enjoy. I cannot imagine having the time or bandwidth to put as much thought into this as you do, OP. What is the point? To add a couple of years to the end of your life? Trust me, those aren't worth it. Try to relax, live in moderation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Your doctor is not going to care what you think your body fat percentage is. For 1) it’s probably wrong. Your doctor is going to look at your labs and bone scans and make their recommendations based on that.

As long as you aren’t losing weight, are eating enough calories and protein, are lifting weights, and not trying to eat very low carb in efforts to “cut” I think you are doing great.

Does 1500 sound like enough calories? It doesn't to me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Your doctor is not going to care what you think your body fat percentage is. For 1) it’s probably wrong. Your doctor is going to look at your labs and bone scans and make their recommendations based on that.

As long as you aren’t losing weight, are eating enough calories and protein, are lifting weights, and not trying to eat very low carb in efforts to “cut” I think you are doing great.

Does 1500 sound like enough calories? It doesn't to me.

Maybe. If OP isn’t losing weight it’s enough. I would def keep your BMI no lower than 20, especially over 50 yrs old. 18-19 is pushing it too low and any sickness, traumatic/stressful event, that shifts your close watch on your macros and calories could put your weight dangerously low and make it harder for you recover- you will hasten muscle and bone density loss

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can you share more about your workout plan and diet?

Aug 2024: Lift 3x, yoga 2x, walk 2x. 1500-1700 calories. ~100g protein and 20-25g fiber. 19-20 BMI. 18% fat.

Sep 2023: Walk 4x, yoga 1x (sometimes). 1200-1400 calories. ~50g protein and 15-20g fiber. 21-22 BMI. 25% fat.

I love that you're eating more and maintaining a lower weight. Too many people are eating barely anything to chase aesthetic goals.

I think given that you're actually eating more and exercising more, you're probably healthier and stronger now than before. I would look to your actual fitness as a stronger indicator of your health than some body fat percentage chart.

[Anonymous]

can you list what you eat in a day ?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Your doctor is not going to care what you think your body fat percentage is. For 1) it’s probably wrong. Your doctor is going to look at your labs and bone scans and make their recommendations based on that.

As long as you aren’t losing weight, are eating enough calories and protein, are lifting weights, and not trying to eat very low carb in efforts to “cut” I think you are doing great.

Does 1500 sound like enough calories? It doesn't to me.

Ha. I need 1200 to stay at a normal weight. Anything more and I gain inexorably.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Such a brag post my god.

I don’t think so at all. OP, share what you’ve learned and what changes you’ve made. I am also mid 50s with mild osteopenia, rising cholesterol and shifting body composition. I have always been skinny and the weight is now coming on quickly and hard to take off. I am trying to eat better and adding a lot more strength training, trying to improve both bone density and blood numbers.

I was slim until menopause and then I gained fat and lost muscle. My weight stayed much the same with slight fluctuations and I wear stretchy clothes so I didn’t really notice. But my bloodwork and bone scans told a different story. I can’t blame the shift on my hormones though - it was my sedentary lifestyle and a lifetime of gaining and losing the same five pounds. Because I didn’t eat enough protein or lift weights, I lost muscle with the fat, little by little. When I gained the next five pounds, it was fat and so on and so on. I think I’ve finally cracked the code and it feels great. I do worry that I’ve gone too far and traded one problem for another, but I’ll let my doctor advise me on that.

Whenever I read these obsessive posts they just sound disordered to me. I am 56, a few pounds overweight but very fit. I eat healthy foods along with a nice dose of ones I enjoy. I cannot imagine having the time or bandwidth to put as much thought into this as you do, OP. What is the point? To add a couple of years to the end of your life? Trust me, those aren't worth it. Try to relax, live in moderation.

Not the OP, but do yourself a favor to avoid looking like a dumb ass and read the remainder of the thread. OP had some bloodwork, osteopenia, and other issues highlighted by her doctor at her annual. In response, she course corrected and is interested in hearing other experiences.

There isn’t anything disordered with having some regime to your lifestyle. People throw that word around when they read something different than what they are doing and decide to project and flex how much more “wonderful” their life is. Meanwhile, you are just being insufferable by not staying in your lane.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My mother, her sisters, their daughters and my son are all underweight, and a lot are probably underfat. My mother is 5'6" and weighs 100lbs. She's a walking skeleton, and has always been this way.

With a BMI of 20, I'm the "fat one" in the family.

It's all fine, OP. Don't overthink it. Only in America would normal people like you worry ab out too thin!!! Ha.

They should get blood work ($50 test) for celiac. Being perpetually underweight is a symptom of celiac disease. You don't absorb nutrition as your villae are gone (blunted).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Your doctor is not going to care what you think your body fat percentage is. For 1) it’s probably wrong. Your doctor is going to look at your labs and bone scans and make their recommendations based on that.

As long as you aren’t losing weight, are eating enough calories and protein, are lifting weights, and not trying to eat very low carb in efforts to “cut” I think you are doing great.

Does 1500 sound like enough calories? It doesn't to me.

It's not! I put in OP's age, height, activity levels etc into a Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE) tracker. It measures how many calories you burn, and what is needed to maintain, lose, or gain weight. OP would maintain her weight with a 1950 calorie daily diet, and is actually setting herself up for slow weight loss eating this little. This is a one-way ticket to sarcopenia and a trip to the hospital during flu season. OP, add a whole avocado or two to your diet daily. Each one is around 250 calories. I think your energy levels would skyrocket if you experiment with adding more high-quality calories.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My mother, her sisters, their daughters and my son are all underweight, and a lot are probably underfat. My mother is 5'6" and weighs 100lbs. She's a walking skeleton, and has always been this way.

With a BMI of 20, I'm the "fat one" in the family.

It's all fine, OP. Don't overthink it. Only in America would normal people like you worry ab out too thin!!! Ha.

They should get blood work ($50 test) for celiac. Being perpetually underweight is a symptom of celiac disease. You don't absorb nutrition as your villae are gone (blunted).

Sigh. No, they don't have celiac disease, or any other malabsorption issue - they just don't eat a lot because they're not that hungry. They're not American. In the US, being overweight is the actual statistical norm. So anything slimmer is now viewed as needing medical attention.

[Anonymous]

My buttocks say it good